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A royal Country Life

November 14th 2013

Four Communications director Marion Hardman has been advising Country Life magazine on promoting HRH The Prince of Wales’ role as guest editor of a special commemorative edition of Country Life magazine, in celebration of his 65th birthday.

The Prince has chosen the majority of the content and it is the first time he has edited a national publication.

Country Life editor Mark Hedges and his editorial team were invited to cover The Prince’s work with rural communities, reflecting his exceptional knowledge of farming and his passion and vision to safeguard the future of the countryside. The Prince has, amongst other things, chosen his top 10 'Countryside Champions' and commissioned an architect from his Foundation for Building Community to design a solution to deliver affordable rural housing. The magazine contains exclusive features on Their Royal Highnesses home in Wales, the garden of their home in Scotland and The Prince's views on art, books, food, and the countryside charities which he supports.

Extensive coverage was achieved in the days before publication across national and international media. The leader column, written by The Prince and focusing on the future of the countryside and the people who live and work in rural Britain, was released under embargo to promote the magazine on the day of publication today (13 November), with interviews with Country Life editor Mark Hedges on national and international TV, radio and in-depth coverage across national, international print and online media.

Mark Hedges, editor of Country Life, published every Wednesday, said: “When HRH The Prince of Wales agreed to guest edit this issue of Country Life, my first phone call was to Marion Hardman of Four Communications to ask her to coordinate the promotion of the issue. Her skill, patience and professionalism has ensured global coverage on a scale unprecedented in our 116-year-old history. I could not be more delighted with the results of the PR. The early indications are that this issue is well on course to become the magazine's best ever sale.

“The commemorative edition is a unique record of The Prince’s love of the countryside and his commitment to preserving its way of life. The Prince has overseen the content of this special issue, from selecting contributors and suggesting features to writing the leader and contributing to reader favourites. We met The Prince to discuss progress and worked with a designated team over an eight month period to get the issue off the ground. Since its launch in 1897, Country Life has been privileged to be given access to the Royal Family at times of national celebrations and we are delighted that the Prince allowed us to mark his 65th birthday by guest editing Country Life – a present to share with the entire nation.”